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With Antonio Brown Likely Out, the Pittsburgh Steelers Add a Wide Receiver to the Practice Squad

November 7th, 2012 at 10:36 PM By Mark Mihalko

The Pittsburgh Steelers got some good news on the injury front this week, as it appears that running back Chris Rainey dodged a bullet and may be available for their match-up with the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday night. However, they may not be so lucky with another important member of the offense.

Wide receiver Antonio Brown, who has 42 receptions for 499 yards and one touchdown in 2012, looks to be out against the Chiefs after suffering an ankle injury against the New York Giants. While his injury may not be a huge loss against the Chiefs, a team which on paper, the Steelers should be able to beat without him, there could be some depth or special teams issues if he and Rainey cannot go.

One of the biggest questions entering the season when looking at the roster was what would happen if injuries occurred to the wide receiving corps. This was caused by the Steelers decision to carry only four wide receivers on the opening day roster, Brown, Mike Wallace, Emmanuel Sanders and Jerricho Cotchery. The hope was that the team would not have to deal with that type of situation in 2012, but now with this injury, they have just that.

The team may look to their practice squad for a potential game day replacement. To that end, the Steelers, who already had a deep receiver corps on the practice squad, made a roster move today to improve that depth even more when they signed rookie Derek Moye (Penn State) to the unit. The 6-4, 210-pound receiver will now join training camp sensation David Gilreath and rookie seventh round selection Toney Clemons on the roster.

If Brown and Rainey cannot go, Gilreath would make the most sense as he has return abilities to help on special teams, and can add a dimension inside the slot with his smallish size. Will they make a move for the game against the Chiefs? Most likely, but we will not know until Sunday or Monday.

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The Pittsburgh Steelers have actually gone through three name changes during their history. The team actually began as the Pittsburgh Pirates, before owner Art Rooney changed their name to the Steelers in 1940. In 1943, they became the Steagles when they were merged with the Philadelphia Eagles as football rosters became depleted during World War II. The next year (1944) saw them similiarly merged with the Cardinals, and they became the oh-so-exciting Card-Pitt team.